Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to modular wall systems formed with installation channels for various conduits and junctions, including electrical power, electrical communication, plumbing, central vacuum, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC).
Related Art
The invention relates to prefabricated modular building construction and units utilized in that construction. Prefabricated building components are used for construction because of their efficiency in installation which can potentially have expense cutting aspects and the reduction in the depletion of natural resources.
Historically the use of 2×4 studs of wood or other lumber of standard dimensions were most commonly used to fabricate the interior and exterior portions of buildings. Skilled tradesmen and a significant amount of time are needed for the fabrication of buildings by this traditional method of building construction. While prefabricated walls made from studs are available, the weight of the units makes them less efficient for installation. These prefabricated walls do not overcome the issue of the depletion of natural resources because they use standard lumber, the manufacturing of which involves a significant amount of waste material. Due to the weight and size of these types of prefabricated walls there are issues with shipping and storage. The installation of elements such as electrical, plumbing, and heating and cooling elements requires drilling, threading, blocking or other time consuming methods for installation because there are no channels for the horizontal placement of these systems.
Other systems using prefabricated walls use materials such as metal sheets or poured concrete or cement forms. These types of systems have been unable to overcome the need for skilled tradesmen for installation. Additionally the prefabricated components are heavy and are unable to be installed without the use of specialty equipment such as cranes, lifts, or other heavy mechanical equipment. In addition, many of the systems have been unable to accommodate plumbing, electrical, and HVAC or are make it difficult to install these systems because of the inability to directly install without feeding the systems through complex or small openings. Many of the systems additionally have not been made of materials that help cut costs and reduce the use of non-renewable resources, or are cumbersome and installation is inconvenient and time consuming.
One such system attempted to overcome some of the issues with standard framing techniques: U.S. Pat. No. 6,584,740 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,440,846. However, the system is made with non-renewable materials, doesn't accommodate the electrical, plumbing and HVAC systems in an easy to install manner, and are unable to work with existing structures. The system is designed to be a fully assembled system whereby the users have to use all components of the system in order to develop an entire structure. Thus, the system is unable to be integrated into already developed structures.
Thus, a prefabricated building system made of renewable materials that helps reduce waste, that is easy to install, store and ship is needed. Additionally a prefabricated system that and enables the installation of electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and insulation to be installed vertically and enables easy installation of electrical and plumbing in the horizontal direction without the need for threading, blocking or other time consuming installation issues, has yet to be developed.